A Chance Vacation
by CM Round Robin
Summary: A round robin story put together on the CBS Criminal Minds board. The team has just finished a boatload of hard cases...JJ has a plan up her sleeve but will everything follow accordingly or does disaster await? No pairings but lots of team interaction.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: A round robin story...see our profile for details. Chapters will be short but frequent. Please review and enjoy.**

**Auraya-of-the-White:  
**

The sounds of weary, dragging feet passed through the bullpen, stopping by the elevators. The team stood there, shoulders slumped, with their overnight bags in their hands. They had been working cases mentally and physically tough without a break for the past month and fatigued lines creased their faces. The entire team needed a break, a vacation.

The shrill sound of JJ's phone ringing interrupted the silence, jerking everyone out of their heads.

"Hello?" JJ asked puzzled.

"Darling! I got what you asked! The cabin in Maine has been booked and the getaway ready!!" Garcia's exuberant voice came over the phone.

A smile broke across JJ's face transforming it. Her surprise plan had been successful. Now to break it to the team…


	2. Chapter 2

**Sparkletasia:**

Deciding to draw out the surprise for just a little longer, she turned sharply on her heel to face the team. They all stopped dead in their tracks, wondering just what she was doing.

"JJ? What's up?" Emily tipped her head to one side, her dark hair falling over her shoulder. "Is there a problem?"

"No, no problem. But I need you all to trust me." Looking at the puzzled glances her teammates were sharing, JJ carried on. "I need each of you to go home, pack enough clothes for a week, and meet me back here in half an hour." The glances had turned to alarm. "It's not a case! So no work clothes, just 'weekend' wear. Okay?"

Hotch peered at her.

"What're you planning?"

Grinning and shooing the team out of the door, JJ began dialing Garcia.

"Now _that _would be telling..."


	3. Chapter 3

**Aletheia_now:**

"If you had to hire one person to plan the rest of your life, who would that person be?" Garcia's voice brightly piped over the phone.

"I suppose the answer is you?" said a smiling JJ.

"Damn right it is girl. I was a travel agent in my past life"

"Then I assume you've got the flights?"

"Yes of course" Garcia said incredulously, "business class flights to…."

"Garcia, I was wondering if you could put us on economy"

"Really? Morgan is really going to freak," Garcia said with a hint of a laugh.

"I want them to have a vacation without thinking they are heading off to case. I'm sure the shock of the small seats and crying babies will help… and it will be funny," JJ added.

"Girl, I don't get your humour, but I like what you are doing. It's done"

"Thanks Garcia"

"Hey JJ, before you go, can I ask you something important?…"


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: We thank you for the alerts/favs/review.**

**Lilyrose777:  
**

With a look of concern on her face, JJ waved Morgan on and whispered into the phone, "Sure Penelope, what's up??"

Garcia took a deep breath and then proceeded, "It's nothing really, it's well, it's, okay here is the deal: things with Kevin are starting to get really serious and well I just don't know if I am ready for all of this, this has never happened to me before - Kevin is an amazing guy and I just don't want to screw things up."

JJ laughed, "Penelope you need to stop, just enjoy your time with him, stop trying to figure it all out, just relax."

"Sure easy for you to say – you've been in a serious relationship before and I well-"

JJ interrupted, "Garcia listen to me, everything is going to be fine. Have you talked to Kevin about the way you have been feeling??"

"No not yet - I am afraid to - you see JJ......"


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Once again thanks :D Chapters do start getting a bit longer now.**

**Redsneakers: **

"... I'm not the kind of girl people would care to look twice if they happen to see me on the street. I'm not you. I can't talk about anything serious without saying stupid things. I just..."

"Hey, hey.. What's it all about?" JJ cut in. She was totally confused. Garcia wasn't usually like this. "Did Kevin say something to you?" When Garcia didn't reply, JJ sighed. "He did, didn't he? What did he say?"

Garcia mumbled something then replied hastily "I gotta go. Talk to you later, kay?" And she hung up.

JJ frowned. Something had happened and she needed to know what. She glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed because she didn't have the time she needed to go and confront Garcia in her office. She saw Emily putting on her coat. She looked around and saw that everyone was already leaving. She walked towards Emily.

"Emily, can I talk to you for a second?" She asked.

Emily's smile faded as she saw a worried look on JJ's face. "Sure, what is it?" She replied, concerned. "Are you okay?"

JJ nodded. She smiled a little to see her friend got all worried in an instant. "I'm good. It' not about me. It's Garcia..."


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Thanks for the reviews/favs/alerts. Since we couldn't reply: Lex - Thanks for reviewing, we're glad you're enjoying it, it's been lots of fun to write!**

**Xzonia:**

Not wanting to betray Garcia's confidence, JJ leaned over to Emily and half-whispered in a conspiratorial voice, "Garcia helped me plan this little getaway. Now I'd like your help surprising her on this trip with a girl's day out. Just the three of us doing our hair and nails, shopping, and talking about guys and other fun topics. I want us to pamper ourselves and have a great time. Are you in?"

Emily's eyebrows went up and wiggled slightly as she responded in her own half-whisper, "The crow flies at night." JJ's smile broadened at Emily's offbeat sense of humor. Emily added, "Garcia won't suspect a thing." She winked and led their way out of the bullpen. With Em's help, JJ was certain that she could help Garcia see what an amazing woman she really is and how lucky Kevin is to have her.

A few minutes later in the car garage, JJ heard Reid call out "Shotgun!" as Morgan, Rossi, Garcia, and he approached the car they would all be taking together. JJ, Hotch, and Emily would be in the second vehicle.

Morgan thought it would be a nice change to have Reid up front, as he normally volunteered to sit in the back when they drove anywhere together. As he gave Spence a playful shove, Garcia called out "Driver's seat!" and headed for that door. Morgan's eyes widened suddenly at her unexpected move. A flash of them careening through the streets popped into his head, punctuated by Garcia's joyful laughter, and he swallowed the fear that rose unbidden into his thoughts and throat. "Hey, baby girl, why don't you sit back and let me be your chauffeur to the airport? You know I don't get enough opportunities to treat you like the goddess you are." He walked to the driver's door, and held out his open hand to Garcia.

Garcia smiled back at Morgan and placed her hand in his, which he kissed lightly on the back. "Why thank you, my gallant and handsome sir," Garcia said warmly, curtsying slightly and batting her eyes as she flirted with him. Morgan led her to the passenger seat behind the driver, and opened her door for her. She slid in and smiled up at Morgan, "Hmm... now I need to think of a way to pay you back, and I have a few good ideas." Morgan laughed. "Girl, you know I can't wait!" He smiled at Garcia for a moment, then closed her door. He felt a rush of victory and pleasure course through him as he opened the driver's door and took the wheel. As Rossi and Reid climbed in, Garcia told him from which gate at the airport they would be departing. As soon as the rest of the team got into the other car, Morgan headed out of the parking garage to the airport.

"Did you know... "Reid began spouting out commercial airline information as Morgan pulled out, and Morgan suddenly remembered why Reid usually sat in the back seat. He was thankful when Rossi quickly interrupted Reid to ask him to turn on the radio so they could listen for weather reports, and Reid smiled at the opportunity to operate the radio controls. With Reid successfully distracted by the radio, everyone in this car enjoyed their drive to the airport. However, the same could not be said for the occupants of the other car...


	7. Chapter 7

**Auraya-of-the-white:**

Hotch was his usual stern and quiet self during the ride. He focused solely on the road, his mind still entangled in the snares of their last case. The silence hung thickly over the occupants of the car. JJ and Emily were eager to talk amongst themselves about the girls' night out but having JJ in the passenger seat made it a bit difficult. Neither of them were keen on breaking the silence even with a whisper.

Both cars made quick stops at each other's homes packing a few extra clothes into their overnight bags before continuing onto the airport. JJ had changed her mind about meeting the team back at Quantico. Instead she had programmed the SUVs' gps system to send them to the Reagan National Airport where the team's coach seats awaited them. JJ chuckled quietly to herself; she could not wait to see the looks on their faces.

Once they arrived at the long term parking garage, everyone exited the cars, bags in hand. JJ suppressed a laugh at the sight of a rarely confused team. Everyone wore completely puzzled looks on their faces except Emily and Hotch. They were both too good at hiding their feelings and expressions.

"Follow me everyone. We have a plan to catch!" JJ strode off confident that the team would follow like lost sheep.

She heard the murmuring behind her, "She's such an independent woman on a mission. She could share the details with the rest of us!" Morgan complained playfully.

Garcia blushed and looked away from Morgan, feeling slightly guilty. She had promised JJ that her lips were sealed. Unluckily for her, she was in a group of profilers and all of them stared at her while hurrying after JJ.

"Sugar princess, is there something that you're not telling us?" Morgan asked suspicious.

"I know nothing." she claimed plastering a sweet look of innocence on her face.

"The probability that Garcia knows more than she is revealing is quite high considering that since we are in an airport, someone would have needed to plan our trip and flight plan. Someone with able computer skills." Reid stated.

They reached Ticketing/Check-In on the third level and JJ dealt quickly and efficiently with the lady behind the desk. No one was checking in any baggage anyways. Soon enough they were moving again, down to the second level.

Emily then spoke up, "I'm pretty familiar with this airport and we are in terminal C, gates 35-45, which only offers flights from US Airways. That means this is a national flight, we are staying in the US."

At this point they reached security where JJ handed their tickets to airport personnel. They revealed their ids for their guns and passed through both the metal detectors and the air machines. Reid jumped nervously at the loud puff of air that surrounded him. Airport security had become so tight.

Hotch grabbed his carry on bag off the conveyor belt and stood next to JJ surveying the crazy scene before them. Lines snaked through the room, loud beeps came from machines, but then his attention was drawn back to the team. Rossi had gone through the metal detector and was waiting for his bag.

"Excuse me sir, please step aside. We need to search your bag…"


	8. Chapter 8

**Thn0715**:

Hotch and JJ stood by waiting for Rossi. Hotch tried to signal him to show his badge to the security guard to hurry this up, but Rossi shrugged and let the guard do his job.

Hotch groaned. "I need coffee," he mumbled as he walked away.

"Ooh! Coffee!" JJ said excitedly and followed.

They returned to the waiting area with seven cups of coffee, well, six cups of coffee and one cup of coffee-flavored sugar for Reid. Hotch sat down next to Rossi.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

"Just a random search. No big deal." .

As they waited for their plane to arrive, Hotch watched his team.

Morgan was giving Reid tips on what he affectionately reffered to as "the subtle art of babe watching". Not so subtle from Hotch's point of view. Especially since Reid was literally taking notes. He giggled, shook his head and turned his attention to the ladies.

JJ, Garcia and Prentiss had been in a huddle since they sat down. Every time one of the guys would venture close, they'd sit back and look up as if nothing were going on. And as soon as they'd leave, they would go right back to their huddle.

"Are you as confused by women as I am?" Hotch asked Rossi.

Rossi laughed out loud. "I've been divorced three times, Hotch. What do you think?"

"Look at them," he said. "They've been huddled like that for the last half hour. They're like middle school gossip girls over there! They're up to something."

"Definitely," Rossi concurred. "The question is...what?"


	9. Chapter 9

**Sparkletasia:**

Garcia smiled, and peeked over Emily's head to the guys behind them. Completely bemused by the girls, they were talking loudly and obviously about them, speculating about exactly what they were up to.

"I'm in for five bucks." said Emily, looking a little disbelieving that they were actually doing this.

"Me too!" added JJ.

"Me three. Now let's get this straight ladies, winner is the person who gets the most correct out of the four. Winner takes all, which will be fifteen dollars. No backing out after signing the paper, and no changing your bets after either. Refusal to pay up gets you dishwashing all week. Okay, are we clear?"

"Waterford."

"Excellent." A mischievous glint appearing in her eye, Garcia grabbed the pen and tucked a loose blue curl behind her ear. She obviously meant business.

"Let's start with our very own resident genius. Girls, please write down your bet for the boy wonder." Quickly jotting down her own, she passed on the paper. Emily took her time, considering the options, whilst JJ scribbled hers down as soon as the paper was in her hands.

"Now Hotch." The process was repeated, with everybody taking time to decide. "Rossi" Quicker this time. "Morg-" At this Garcia blushed. Was it cheating if she technically knew?

Emily may have been on holiday, but the profiler in her didn't miss a trick. "You KNOW!" she exclaimed.

Garcia's eyes widened. "Um... it's not what you think?"

"What I'm thinking Garcia, is how do you know what Morgan's pyjamas look like?"

"He's stayed over before, when I was- When we had that trouble with Baylor. Don't look at me like that missy!" she yelped in response to JJ's raised eyebrow. "Look, we'll just exempt him. Make it a best out of three. Okay?"

Stifling their giggles, JJ and Emily nodded very seriously, before bursting out into peals of laughter. The men looked over in alarm, but then something else grabbed their attention...


	10. Chapter 10

**Thursdaynext**:

"Flight AC262 now boarding at Gate 38." The announcement came over the speakers, preventing Hotch from further speculating as to the girls' behaviour.

The team picked up their bags and headed toward the gate. Hotch looked at his team as they walked ahead of him. Morgan had picked up Garcia's bag as well as his own and Garcia linked her arm through his as they walked together. JJ and Prentiss were laughing as they walked ahead and Rossi was trying unsuccessfully to look interested in what Reid was explaining to him. He wasn't sure what JJ's plan was, but he could feel himself relax, if only slightly, at the thought of a few days with his team as people, not as profilers.

His attitude changed however, when he stepped onto the plane and followed the group down the narrow aisle…all the way to the back of plane. People jostled one another as they tried to get seated and over the din of the 'economy class shuffle' he heard a baby crying.

"Excuse me…allow me…" Hotch felt a carry-on bag jabbing into his side as another passenger attempted to hoist it into the overhead. He glanced at the woman, his soft lips parting slightly in a smile and effortlessly lifted her heavy bag into the compartment. She smiled back at him, her cheeks blushing, and he continued on to his seat.

"So, JJ wants us to leave everything behind, even civilization," Hotch thought wryly to himself, as he took in the crowded, over warm cabin. Before taking his seat, Hotch removed his jacket, allowing it to slip slowly over his broad shoulders and down his muscular arms before neatly folding it over the armrest. He realized that he was the only one of his team wearing a suit, and that even Rossi had foregone a jacket. JJ turned in her seat and made a sweeping gesture to indicate the press of humanity.

"It's all part of the experience!" Her eyes had a shine to them as she glanced at each of her companions. Hotch found it hard not to find her enthusiasm contagious.

The remaining passengers had finished boarding and the flight attendants were settling in the late comers when there was a commotion near the front of the plane. Hotch leaned forward in his seat, his crisp white shirt stretching taut over his chest.

"He's lucky, they don't normally allow passengers to board after the final call," stated Reid, as they watched the man take his seat several rows ahead of them. The man's behaviour seemed odd, his gaze darting around the plane anxiously. Hotch couldn't help but think that the man seemed familiar somehow. Hotch tried to put it out of his mind as he leaned back in his seat, loosened his tie ever so slightly, and closed his eyes for take off.


	11. Chapter 11

**Lilyrose777:**

As Hotch drifted off to sleep his mind traveled back in time, back to the summer he turned twelve. It was a hot summer day, the sun was shining, the sky was blue and Hotch along with his younger brother Sean and his best friend Kayla were headed to Hotch's favorite swimming hole. He had liked Kayla as long as he could remember - she was a cute little red head with big blue eyes and freckles that brushed over her nose. When she smiled her whole face would shine and those dimples – every time he saw those dimples Hotch would just melt.

The moment Hotch saw Kayla - he knew that he would marry her one day. He even told his mother this and she just laughed, "Aaron don't you think you are a bit young to be thinking about marriage??" He didn't care - all he knew was that he loved Kayla and he knew Kayla loved him.

''Aaron, will you stop running?" Kayla said as she tried to keep up with him. "Yeah what's the rush?" Hotch's younger brother yelled running behind Kayla. Hotch stopped and turned to face Kayla and Sean, who were both out of breath trying to keep up with him. Hotch smiled, "I just want to get there before anyone else does and well if you all haven't noticed it's hot as heck out here and I would like to cool off – wouldn't you??"

Kayla smiled, "Well of course we do silly, but we don't want to pass out before we get there, couldn't we just walk for a while??" Hotch sighed, when that girl smiles at him - there was nothing he would not do for her. "Alright, alright - we'll walk, if that is what you want to do." Kayla took Hotch's hand in hers and smiled, "Yes that is what I want to do, I want to walk with you Aaron."

Sean just rolled his eyes, "Gross - if this is what it's going to be like all day I'm going back home. I can't take watching you two make goo-goo eyes at each other, I'm leaving." And with that Sean turned and headed back to the house, leaving Aaron and Kayla to themselves. "Good" Kayla said with a smile, "Now it's just you and I." Blushing, Aaron smiled at Kayla, "I guess it is." Taking her hand Aaron led Kayla up the path towards the swimming hole, but Aaron and Kayla would not make it to the hole that day.

For as the two of them turned the corner, waiting for them was a man - dressed in black from head to foot, his hair long and unkempt, his eyes cold as stone, with a scar running the length of his cheek. He stared at Aaron and Kayla and began to laugh, "So what do we have here, where are you two headed off to?"

Aaron, pushing Kayla behind him, glared at the man, "We're on our way home. Now if you will excuse us," Grabbing Kayla he turned and began to walk away, when he heard the man call after him, "Son, you might want to rethink that move." Aaron turned and saw that the man has a gun pointed directly at him and Kayla. "Now, son, I don't mean you any harm, all I want is the girl, that's all I want. You just turn around go home and leave the girl to me."

Aaron felt Kayla's hand tighten around his arm and he glared at the man again, "I can't do that, I will not leave her." The man laughed again, "Son, you don't really have a choice." And Aaron didn't because just behind Kayla and Aaron, another man steps out of the bushes. Before Aaron could react the man hit him over the head with a bat nearly knocking Aaron unconscious. The last thing he heard was Kayla's voice screaming – "AARON HELP ME!!!!"

Waking from a cold sweat, Hotch scanned the plane until his eyes fell upon the man in the first couple of rows in front of him. Glaring at the man, he now knew why the man had looked so familiar to him.......


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: We thank you for the reviews/alerts/favs...Hold on to your hats, the story is only beginning.**

**Redsneakers:**

"Hotch?" Rossi opened his eyes, sensing a sudden movement on the chair next to him. He sat straighter when he saw Hotch's expression. "You okay?" He asked, concern filling his voice. His eyes followed where Hotch was staring at and the older agent frowned. "What are you looking at?"

Hotch swallowed hard. He didn't realize that Rossi was talking to him until the agent shook him a little. He looked at Rossi with wary eyes and he shook his head. "No, nothing," he said after a long pause. "I just remembered I haven't turned the VCR on yet. I have this game I'm dying to watch."

Rossi widened his eyes in disbelief. He snorted. "The next time you lie, Hotch, pick something more realistic," The older man said irately. He closed his eyes and mumbled something about how people could be so stupid when they tried so hard to be believable. He knew something was off but he didn't think it was appropriate for him to make Hotch tell him anything he didn't want to. They were not working now. Even if they were, Hotch had the very right to hide things from him - the younger agent was still the chief of the unit. Soon, Rossi drifted back to slumber.

Hotch lifted his hand to wipe the cold sweat off of his forehead and he realized that his hand was trembling. He gritted his teeth. He glanced up and saw the man he thought he knew again. _No_, he corrected. _I did know him_. Just as he was thinking, the man he was staring at stood up and made his way to the restroom. Hotch felt a rush of blood pumping his veins and his heart beat faster. He stood up, brushing Emily who sat beside him. The woman stirred a little but didn't wake up. Hotch walked slowly down the aisle. He could actually hear his heartbeat in his ears.

As he reached the restroom, the door opened. A very tall man got out of the small cubicle, looking straight at him. Hotch's face grew pale in an instant. Those pair of eyes! He would never forget those eyes.

The tall man nodded, frowning a little at seeing Hotch's reaction, and then slowly started to make his way back to his seat.

"Wait!" Hotch called before he could stop himself.


	13. Chapter 13

**Xzonia:**

Accustomed to facing a variety of dangerous and frightening situations in his work at the BAU, Hotchner expected his voice to project with authority when he called out to the tall man walking away from him. However, he was surprised to hear the word catch in his throat and come out as a barely audible squeak as a sudden rush of terror surged through him. Here was the man who had taken Kayla when he was a child, and he had been helpless to stop her assailants or even to protect himself from being knocked unconscious. He watched the man walk away, and again could not stop him.

Unexpectedly, Hotch felt defenseless, like a child again, and he quickly turned and went into the bathroom to compose himself. Having no reason to be in there, he washed his hands in the sink, and then forced himself to face his reflection in the mirror. The ashen, fear-stricken face that stared back at him wasn't someone he recognized. "Get hold of yourself" Aaron admonished himself. He reminded himself that he was no longer a small child, but an FBI agent with a team - _his _team - here with him, ready to help him at a moment's notice. He stared at himself until his face settled into a familiar, deadly stare that he had practiced many times in the past to create the perfect mask. He thought about the best course of action to take, composed a plan of action, and opened the bathroom door, confident in his abilities again.

Hotchner walked down the aisle to the back of the plane to reach a stewardess. In a hushed voice, he pulled out his badge and identified himself to her. He asked her if she could provide him with the name of one of the passengers. After assuring her that it was for official business reasons only, she agreed and went to get the passenger list. She told Hotch the name of the man in the seat he indicated, and asked if she should alert the pilot. He told her that would not be necessary at this time, as they still had a few hours before landing, and he would handle the situation for now.

Hotch headed back up the plane aisle to where Garcia and Morgan sat together. He bent down beside them and asked Garcia in a low voice, "Kevin still works at the BAU, right? And he's in today?"

Garcia, who had been smiling and joking with Morgan, was surprised by the question. With a more serious voice, she replied, "Yes, sir, he does. Why?"

"Do you think you could get Kevin on the plane's phone? I'd like him to run a check on a man named Lawrence Wilson - where he's lived over the past 30 years, his priors, everything." He provided Garcia with the little information the stewardess had been able to share with him about the man, and added "He's on this plane, and I'd like to know as much about him as possible before we land. If I'm right, he should be leaving this plane in handcuffs."

"Yes, sir, I'll get right on it" Garcia replied, reaching for the air phone.

"Hotch, what do you think this guy did? And what can I do to help?" Morgan asked, focused and serious now.

"Help Garcia get the information we need from Kevin to profile this guy. If he's the unsub I think he is, he is a child rapist and killer." The two men exchanged meaningful glances. Hotchner looked over to where JJ, Emily, and Reid sat together in three middle seats, talking and laughing. "Don't tell the others until we know for sure. There's no need to ruin their fun." Hotchner turned and headed back to his seat.

Rossi had only pretended to be asleep. While Aaron had been gone, he turned sideways in his seat and had noticed Hotchner's movement on the plane. As Hotchner moved to take his seat again, Rossi turned around and said "So, I guess you were asking Garcia if she could find a way to tape that game for you, huh?" He grinned slightly at Hotch as he said it, but the other man's serious expression quickly removed his smile. "Well, if you want to talk about it, I'm here," Rossi said lightly. He really wanted to pressure Hotchner into telling him what was going on, but he was trying to be more diplomatic with his team members.

Hotchner was surprised by Rossi's restraint. He looked at Rossi and smiled a little, and said softly "Actually, I was trying to get her to give up what JJ's plans are for us when we get to our destination, but she was surprisingly resistant to my charms." Rossi laughed at his comment, but knew he was still deflecting the truth.

"That's because she's been OD'ing on Morgan's charms this trip," Rossi replied. Both men smiled at that. They engaged in light banter, but Hotchner continued to glance over at the man in front of him from time to time, impatiently awaiting more information about him from Garcia.


	14. Chapter 14

**Auraya-of-the-White:**

The flight took about three hours total and about midway through Garcia unbuckled her seat belt. She stood up a bit shakily. Flying was not her favorite activity especially when they hit a patch of turbulence, like previously. The captain had just turned off the fasten seat belt sign and informed everyone that it was safe to move around the cabin again.

They were flying in a … and she was sitting in the window seat, G. She gently pushed by Morgan's legs in the cramped space, offering up a smile, to move across the aisle to where Emily had switched from sleeping in aisle seat E to being engrossed in a thick Italian novel.

"Excuse me, Em," she said, "Need to talk to Hotch."

Hotchner was nestled in the middle seat between Emily and Rossi. He had spent the entire time staring at the man several rows before them, recalling the past over and over. He never saw Kayla again after it had happened. Hotch had woken up with a sore head all alone. His parents had quickly moved out of the area, fearing for their child's safety. Soon after his parents separated, his father's many affairs uncovered.

Hotch shook off the past; he did not need to delve any further into it, as Garcia tapped him on the shoulder, "Hey, I got the info you asked for," she grinned cheerfully, an orange butterfly clip bouncing in her multi-colored streaked hair.

He took a quick glance around, noticing that Emily was standing in the aisle behind Garcia, book still in hand, while Reid's seat B, across the aisle from Rossi was presently occupied with book just as fat as Prentiss'. Reid himself appeared to be in the restroom. JJ was sitting next to Reid in the window seat A, paging through a soccer magazine. Rossi seemed to be sleeping beside him but at this point Hotch could not be sure whether he was faking again. Somehow Rossi had perfected the art of pretend sleep down to the slow rise and fall of his chest.

"And?" Hotchner questioned Garcia, his tone serious, but his mind swimming with turmoil.

"This is what my Kevin has managed to dig up, he's no me, but he has his uses." Garcia quipped before continuing. "Apparently, Lawrence Wilson was born in Virginia to an Erica and Gordon Wilson. He has an identical twin brother, Fredrick born five minutes earlier. The parents couldn't handle having twins so they gave Lawrence up for adoption. He was adopted by a childless couple living in Portland, Maine. He has spent the rest of his life there, attending University of Maine: Machias, majoring in environmental science. Lawrence is currently returning from a business trip in Quantico. No known criminal record, just a couple of traffic violations."

"Oh," Garcia added, "Morgan said to tell you from what's listed here and from his behavior so far on the plane, that it's unlikely that he's a rapist and killer. His twin on the other hand…he continued to live in Virginia, living near Staunton in his early twenties. Never went to college, he worked as a mechanic. He was serving three concurrent life sentences for murder in the first degree and statutory rape when he died about a year ago of a heart attack. His victims were Kayla Duntree-"

He paled suddenly at her name. Admonishing himself, he once again thought, get a grip Hotch and his impregnable mask slipped back into place.

Garcia had continued on giving two more names and left a bit puzzled by Hotch's quick dismissal and apology, that he had gotten some facts mixed up.

Hotch visibly relaxed after Garcia returned to her seat. Rossi, meanwhile, had opened his eyes, staring at Hotch curiously, "You want to tell me now what this is all about?"

Hotchner tried to come up with another excuse but his mind drew a blank. "You are frightfully good at pretending to be asleep, where did you learn that trick?" he asked, trying to sidetrack Rossi's train of thought.

"Hotch, quit deflecting." Rossi responded slightly reprovingly.

Hotchner sighed heavily, leaned over to Rossi and proceeded to tell him what happened that summer. Luckily Prentiss was still involved in her Italian novel, now snacking on a chocolate bar. By some means, she managed to keep the pages of her book their original pristine white.

"So it was clearly the twin, Fredrick. He did live near my hometown Staunton. My mother grew up there and stayed in the area even for her college education. She went to Mary Baldwin College. That's where Sean and I were raised until that summer. At least she got justice…I should have tried to find out what happened with her case." he commented guiltily.

"You were twelve, Hotch, a kid. There was nothing you could do. Don't beat yourself up about it, he was caught in the end and that's all the matters. You were still too young to help catch him. You left that to law enforcement just like you were supposed to." Rossi responded trying to push Hotch out of his emotional slump.

The rest of the flight past quickly and soon enough the plane was taxiing onto the tarmac. They exited Portland International Airport, JJ carrying several sets of keys in her hand.

"I never want to travel in coach again," Morgan complained, "I couldn't sleep at all. Every time I closed my eyes another baby would wail or a toilet would flush."

JJ laughed at Morgan's dismal expression, "Come on you survived. Plus it wouldn't be a real vacation without traveling properly."

JJ led the team to two cars, two bright orange jeeps to be more specific.

"Oh no, please JJ. Those can't be our cars!" Reid moaned along with Morgan.

"Of course not! I wouldn't do that to you guys, or would I?" she smirked mischievously.

She ended up bringing them to two plain silver sedans, no SUVs. JJ laughed inside as she could basically hear the sighs of relief. Everyone got in after JJ programmed the gps system to lead them near Acadia National Park. They were going to go camping near the national park. She couldn't wait to see their reactions at the sight of camping equipment she had rented, along with the rustic plumbing and facilities.

* * *

It was dusk. Many people were sure to be at top Cadillac Mountain tonight watching the amazing sunset play across the sky but Georgia was too busy trying to push the huge rock off Bubble Rock Mountain. It had been an easier trail up, one to get her back into the swing of things. Most people had long gone since the sun was already slowly setting but she preferred it that way. Georgia had purposely waited until most of the cars had vanished from the parking lot.

She set up her self timed camera and posed pushing the rock with all her might, her back to the camera. It had been dumped there by glaciers and no one could get it to budge. More than twenty people had tried together and failed. She had not noticed the soft crunch of pebbles and it was too late. She tried to scream but the gloved hand covered her mouth effectively as she was tossed off the mountain cliff into the forest way below, her scream dying in her throat.


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: Thanks again for all the reviews! Enjoy...**

**Thn0715:**

Hotch, JJ, Prentiss and Rossi piled into the lead car, Morgan, Garcia and Reid into the other, and they headed to the Blackwoods campgrounds near Acadia National Park. They stopped at the visitor's center to pay their group registration fee and get maps of the area. The maps highlighted all the hotspots for hiking, swimming, and climbing among other things they could do with their four-day vacation away from the rest of the world.

They arrived at the campgrounds and began setting up the two large tents. JJ, being the only real experienced camper of the group, had the ladies tent erected in record time. The boys, on the other hand, were having issues.

"This can't possibly be this complicated!" said a frustrated Morgan.

Reid kept reading and re-reading the directions. "How can you make any sense at all out of this, JJ? This is like reading Russian!"

JJ, Prentiss and Garcia stood by laughing when Hotch tried to take over, and the all-powerful task of tent construction defeated him as well. Rossi threw his hands in the air and conceded defeat. Finally JJ took pity on them and constructed their tent as well. The boys watched in awe.

When she finished, Morgan looked at her and simply said, "That's not fair." She laughed, walked back to the ladies and held out her hand. Prentiss and Garcia each handed her five dollars and shook their heads.

"What was that?" asked Reid.

Prentiss, still giggling, answered, "JJ bet us five buck that she'd have to put your tent up for you. I said Hotch would get it, Garcia said Morgan would get it."

Garcia playfully punched Morgan in the arm. "You just lost me five bucks! You're gonna have to find a way to make up for that!

"What'd you have in mind, Mama?" he playfully responded.

"I'm sure I'll think of something," she teased.

The team laughed and began unpacking the rest of their equipment. Hotch smiled at seeing his team finally able to unwind and let loose. After their long day of traveling, they decided to call it a night.

The guys got changed and situated in their tent.

"Have any of you guys ever been camping before?" Reid asked.

Morgan shook his head. "I'm a city boy, kid. Camping has never been on my radar."

"Me neither," replied Rossi.

"Not since I was a kid," answered Hotch.

They could hear the ladies still laughing in the next tent.

"They're like high school girls at a slumber party over there!" said Morgan.

"Are you speaking from experience?" joked Reid.

Hotch and Rossi laughed.

"Seriously," Morgan said. "What is going on over there?"

JJ, Prentiss and Garcia were acting exactly like high school girls at a slumber party. They could not stop laughing.

"How many more bets are we going to make?" laughed Prentiss.

"I'm going to be broke by the time we leave here!" laughed Garcia.

JJ ran down the list of their five dollar bets.

"Ok, we're guessing at what they sleep in. We should have our answer on that one in the morning. We just have to get up before they do. I'm five bucks up on who would get the tent put up. Who will be the first one up? Who will wind up injuring himself first? Keeping track of who has the most complaints is gonna be tough. Am I missing any?"

"I think you've covered everything," said Prentiss.

"Besides, I'm sure we'll come up with more as the week goes on!" added Garcia.

They finally decided to try to get some sleep.

The next morning JJ was the first of the ladies awake. She stepped outside the tent to see that Hotch was already up. He was sitting at the picnic table in his shorts staring out over the horizon.

"What are you doing up so early?" he asked when she sat next to him.

"I'm still on new-mom hours. I could ask you the same question."

He nodded toward the magnificent sunrise making its way over the mountains. "I wanted to see that."

They sat in silence for a few moments enjoying the glorious view.

"I don't think I said thank you," Hotch said.

"For what?"

"For this. We really needed this. We were all getting burned out. You're a lot better at profiling than you think, JJ."

She grinned. "I should be thanking you."

"For what?"

"For being the first one up. You just won me another five bucks!"

Hotch and JJ laughed, and soon they were joined by the rest of the team. Prentiss looked around at the four men in their nighttime apparel and threw her arms in the air.

"Yes! Finally! Five bucks, ladies!"

The guys hung their heads and laughed as the ladies divvied up their winnings. They retreated to their tents to get ready for the day. They wanted to spend the morning at Sand Beach. JJ wanted to take them to the Jordan Pond House for lunch. Then they would hike the Jordan Pond Nature Trails out to Bubble Rock.


	16. Chapter 16

**Sparkletasia:**

"We're here!" JJ yelled to the rest of the team.

"Just as well I have another eardrum..." joked Emily. She was standing right next to JJ, the group having split somewhat on the way up here. She, JJ, Morgan and Hotch were a good fifty yards or so in front of the other three, who were just emerging from around the corner. Rossi looked slightly weary compared to Reid and Garcia, who were having an animated conversation on the merits of some new super hero movie that Emily had missed the name of.

"All I'm saying is that it was totally obvious. You can't call it a twist if it's staring you in the face!"

"What, that he was his _brother? _Garcia, that was hardly obvious."

"Angel, just because you were too distracted by the spy girl, doesn't mean the rest of us weren't paying attention."

"I wasn't distracted by her!" Reid yelped, a slight blush tingeing his cheeks. "She had a very interesting character."

"Indeed, I can think of two particular aspects that you were _very _interested in..." Watching Reid turn a dangerous shade of red, she giggled. They were now almost fully caught up with the others, in fact, they were just behind them. "All I'm saying sugar, is that if Emily and JJ wore outfits like that to work, none of you guys would ever get any work done." Fixing the men with a half smiling stare, she asked "Would you now?"

Hotch coughed. Reid got redder (if that were possible). Rossi looked away. Morgan grinned.

Emily and JJ looked ready to pull a gun on someone.

Garcia shrugged. "Just sayin'. Now let's go have some beach fun!"

The towels were laid out, the esky with their drinks had been put in the shade, sunglasses and beachwear donned. Morgan had brought a beach ball, which he, JJ and Rossi had commandeered and were playing an informal game of volleyball with. Emily and Garcia were sunbathing, Reid was reading a weather beaten paperback, and Hotch was finishing setting up. Sliding down onto the sand next to Emily, he asked dryly

" So, how many bets have you won by now?" Bemused by the mornings gambling, he had uncovered that the girls had enough going to set up their own bookies. Even the walk down here had been punctuated by shouts of variations on 'I win! Five bucks Prentiss!'

Emily pushed herself up on her elbows. She had large sunglasses on, a black bikini top and denim shorts. Fixing Hotch with a mockery of his own usual glare, before crashing back on to the sand and letting out a groan.

"One. One measly bet! I'm going to come out of this holiday with my pay cheque gone at this rate!"

Hotch was about to reply, when a commotion distracted the both of them. Morgan had thrown Reid over his shoulder, and was now running full pelt. Straight towards the sea. Both got up quickly and ran down to the waterline, along with the rest of the team.

SPLASH.

Morgan emerged first, laughing uncontrollably. Seconds later a considerably more flustered Reid popped up, shaking the water from his long hair. Both completely soaked, they stumbled back out on to the beach, where Morgan promptly laid down on the sand and rolled around in hysterics. The team snapped out of their silence, and joined in. Reid stood there in a saturated pair of jeans and began trying to ring out his shirt which was clinging to him like a second skin. Pushing his hair out his face, he looked down at Morgan.

"Next time, warn me. I won't wear my watch." Smiling, he helped Morgan (who was still snickering) up.

"Aw Reid. You're all soggy!"

"Come on Spence, let's go find you a towel or something."

Garcia was still cackling to herself merrily. Morgan walked over to her, slinging an arm around her shoulder.

"You know, I wouldn't laugh so hard mama."

"Why?"

"Because it's you next." Before she had the chance to react in anyway, Morgan picked her up and launched the technical analyst into the ocean. Spluttering, her head appeared, obscured by masses of candy floss hair, all blue pink and blonde.

" I am SO going to get you later Derek."

"Whatever you say, Cousin It."

Chuckling, he and Emily went to join her in the water, whilst Rossi and Hotch turned to each other.

"We're not doing a very good job of keeping the kids under control Aaron."

"Please don't tell me they've got you in on the family metaphor too?"

" Of course not. Now come on Mum, up for a swim?"

The next hour passed in a blur of sunshine and laughter, and then the team, coated in seawater and sand, decided that it was time for lunch.


	17. Chapter 17

**Aletheia_now:**

"…and we are just receiving reports that a young woman has been found deceased in the forest below Bubble Rock Mountain. The police are treating the death as an accident but will continue investigating…."

"Could you please turn that off?" Garcia quietly asked the waiter, pointing the television set broadcasting the news. "I think we all need a break from death," she explained, seeing Emily's inquiring gaze.

"Well, let's order then!" Morgan exclaimed, looking around at the table. And with that they got to the business of lunch, something they all took very seriously.

* * *

Not four blocks away, a figure sat in a dingy motel room. Watching that same news broadcast, he felt anger welling up inside him. Jumping up and pacing aggressively, a million thoughts raced through his head.

_How could they not be treating the death as suspicious? The police must be completely incompetent. How could they miss it? I left it there to be found. To scream 'I AM HERE AND I DID THIS'. No, this won't do at all. They must realise that no one is safe while I am here. They have to fear for their lives, their children's lives. I was too safe. This one will easily be written off as a suicide or accident. No, the next one will be obvious. So no one can pretend I don't exist. I will be known. _

A loud laugh from the next room interrupted his thoughts. Not wanting to listen to a local hooker earning her daily wage, he grabbed a coat and cap and headed out.

* * *

"Oh Reid, be adventurous" Emily said with mock exasperation "you cant go your whole life eating only variations on the humble burger!"

"But I like what I know. And last time you got me to try something new I ended up eating a very unsavoury part of a bull"

No one could contain their laughter, even Hotchner.

_Three smiles and outright laughter in one day from Hotch __, _JJ mentally noted, _this was exactly what we all needed, just some time away __. _

Two hours and many laughs later, the group left the restaurant and headed towards their cars. Talking deeply to Rossi, Prentiss didn't see the man until she bumped into him, hard.

"Oh, I am sorry I really didn't see you," apologized Prentiss.

"That's okay," the man mumbled.

Looking to catch up with the group, she took no notice to the sunglasses and cap obscuring the man's face. With another apologetic smile, she ran to catch up with Rossi.

The man turned to continue walking as well, but spied something lying on the ground. _She must have dropped it__, _he thought as he bent down to pick it up and check it for any cash. Looking at it closer he realised it wasn't a wallet, but a badge.

"Special Agent Emily Prentiss, Behavioral Analysis Unit, FBI" He muttered to himself.

Looking at the departing group, he examined each member. _The suit guy definitely FBI. The muscularly one definitely a cop maybe FBI and the Prentiss woman proven FBI. The others, I'm not sure. They could be. Probably considering whom they are with. _

He felt pride and happiness course through his body.

_They know about me! And there they are, no idea I am right behind them._

"But one must be sure" he whispered to himself, headed to the nearest pay phone and dialling.

"Police Department, how may I help?" A bright voiced piped over the phone.

Covering the phone with part of his shirt, he growled "I have information for the FBI"

"I am sorry sir, but this is the local police department. I can give you the number for the local FBI branch if you wish…"

"No" he said forcibly, "I want to talk to the FBI agents working with you. Tell Agent Prentiss I have some information for her"

"Please hold, I will see what I can do"

Increasingly agitated, the joyous hold music only served to infuriate him more.

After a few minutes, the voice came back "I am sorry sir, we are working with no agent with that name here. In fact we are not working closely with any FBI agents at the moment. Is there something I can do to help? Sir?" Her queries were met with beeps as the man hung up the phone.

"So they are not here for me after all. Well they will know me soon enough. With the FBI involved the whole world would have to pay attention" He muttered to himself as he walked. His mind began to list ways he could gain the attention he deserved from the FBI.

_I could use one of them as a witness. Then they will have to be involved. No, but they may remember too much or be able to identify me. If they are first on the scene, then they have to be involved. And I will show them that it is no accident. They will soon know me, and hunt me. _

He knew exactly who would help him, someone who _knew _what these people were about. Opening the door of a pub, he raised his hand in greeting to the familiar figure sitting at the bar…


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: We thank you for the reviews/alerts/favs. The updates will be slower now because nothing more has been written ahead of time. This chapter mentions the original people in chapter 11 and 14, you may want to review those chapters.**

**Lilyrose777**:

As the man at the bar waved the young man at the door over, he ordered himself another drink and smiled as the young man sits down beside him.

"Well Carl, sounds like you been out having yourself a good time - how old was she anyway?"

Carl whispered to the man, "Look you got to help me out here, you heard what they said on the news - they think that girl's…Umm…" Carl stopped talking for a moment as the bartender asked him what he wanted to drink. Carl waved him away and leaned in close to the man next to him, "They think that girl's death was an accident," Becoming angry as he said it, Carl looked the man in the eyes, "I can assure you it was not an accident and I need you to help me. You are going to help me or else.

Taking a sip of his drink, the man at the bar turned and glared at Carl, "Or else? What, boy? What are you going to do to me?? Listen, I don't have to help you do a damn thing. You understand me, boy? I do what I want when I want - you got that??"

Carl backed away from the man and nodded yes.

The man smiled and patted Carl on the back, "Good, glad we got that settled. Now, what can I help you with?"

Carl let out a long sigh and pulled out the badge with Emily Prentiss' picture in it. "I need to know how to pull the FBI into this - I want them to be a part of this. I want them to come after me, I want them to..."

The man at the bar looked at the badge, then looked at the young man and laughed. Leaning in, he whispered to him, "So Carl you want to make a name for yourself?? Want to make history?? Well, I think I can help you out with that." The man at the bar tossed the badge back at Carl and glared at him, "But she is not the one to go after. No not her. If we get anyone involved…If we go after anyone - we go with the main leader."

Little did Carl James know but the man at the bar already had an agenda. He already had a plan and it was not going to be him helping Carl out. No, Mr. James was going to be helping him out - he just didn't know it yet.

"You see Carl, if you want to make a name for yourself - you don't waste your time on those who don't matter, those that can't make decisions…No, you go after the one who makes it happen, the leader."

"But what if we use this Prentiss woman as a way to make whoever is in charge do want we want? Shouldn't we explore that avenue??"

The man at the bar stood up and placed his hand on Carl James' shoulder, "Trust me son, I will not need Ms. Prentiss to get Agent Aaron Hotchner to do what we need him to do."

Shocked Carl looked at the man, "You know–"

The man interrupted him, "Ah yes, Mr. Hotchner and myself go way, way back, long before he ever thought of becoming an agent. In some ways I like to think that I helped put him on that path all those years ago."

Looking at his watch the man turns to leave, but not before he hands Carl a piece of paper with a number on it. "We'll be in touch. Now if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment with a very dear friend. Have a nice night Carl."

And with that the man turned and made his way to the exit. Waiting for him outside was black sedan. Sliding into the passenger side, he smiled at the man next to him - it was like looking at himself in a mirror.

"Well, well, Lawrence, long time no see. So great to see you again my brother." Lawrence turned and looked at his twin smiling at him, "You know Freddie…the whole world thinks you are dead."

Fredrick Wilson laughed at that statement, "Well there are a lot of us that are supposed to be dead Larry. Isn't that right lovely??"

The woman turned her face away from the window to face Freddie. Her beautiful red hair had changed into a dark auburn. The freckles that once brushed her nose have faded and her beautiful blue eyes no longer sparkled. Now they were full of hatred, full of bitterness towards the men that had held her captive all these years, men that had taken all of her innocence, all of her youth. Robbed her of her family, robbed her of the life she could have had. Many times she had wished they would have killed her. Death would have been better than this life, anything would have been better. She kept hoping that one day her family would find her but Fredrick made sure that would never happen!!

Glaring at Fredrick, Kayla rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah Fredrick I guess we are dead." Then she turned and stared out the window again.

Fredrick laughed, "Now sugar, don't be upset and all. If it makes you feel any better I saw a very close friend of yours today. I must say he has changed a bit, but I will never forget those eyes of his. Yeah little Kayla - I saw your love, your Aaron today."

Kayla refused to face him, refused to give him what he wanted, to let him see her hurt. But she did hurt at the sound of his name, her heart broken into pieces. _Oh Aaron_, she thought to herself, _I am so glad you are alive, so glad..._


	19. Chapter 19

**Xzonia:**

After lunch was finished, JJ led the gang over to the Jordan Pond Nature Trails. The day was warm and sunny, but the trail was well-shaded by the trees lining the path. The beautiful Jordan Pond sparkled close by.

They could hear birds warbling in the trees. Looking out over the lake, the group was surprised to see a falcon gliding over it. JJ acted as their travel guide, leading the group while reading from the brochure in her hand. She informed them that Acadia had a wide range of singing birds, water fowl, and birds of prey. Reid, walking close to her, thought of how much Gideon would have enjoyed coming here just to bird watch.

"If you would like to go canoeing or kayaking later, they offer that on this lake," JJ continued. "They also have different types of fish, if you want to go fishing later…" As JJ provided the highlights of the area to the group, Morgan placed his arm over Garcia's shoulder and pulled her closer. They joked in low voices to each other to prevent interrupting JJ.

Prentiss, Rossi, and Hotchner brought up the rear. Dave and Emily were discussing favorite authors. Aaron walked slightly apart from them, not interested in discussing literature at the moment. He tried to focus on the beautiful scenery and enjoy where he was, but his thoughts kept returning to Kayla. He tried, unsuccessfully, to think of his son instead. He wished he had his cell phone with him; he would at least be able to pull up his latest saved video of Jack to watch.

JJ had confiscated everyone's phones before they all went to bed their first night at the campsite. Her point had been for them to forget about their normal daily troubles for a few days. Trying to help everyone get into the spirit of things, Aaron had been the first to relinquish his phone to her outstretched bag. He later found out that this move had cost Emily $5, wagering he would be the last to part with his phone. Unfortunately, Hotchner currently had few useful distractions from the one thought he didn't want to dwell on at the moment. He now wished that Emily had won her bet.

Aaron found himself looking out over the lake again at the soaring falcon. It had been swooping up and down on the wind currents, and appeared as though it was simply enjoying the act of flying. Then the bird suddenly dove and snatched a fish that had swam too close to the surface of the water. The fish squirmed in the falcon's claws as the two rose higher into the air. Hotch felt a shiver go down his back. If he had been a superstitious person, he might have thought of the event as a bad omen.

Once JJ ran out of local trivia to impart, Reid stepped closer and engaged her in some light-hearted conversation. Hearing JJ laugh, Hotchner marveled at how well she was able to enjoy everyone's company on the team. Though Hotchner was fond of Reid and enjoyed discussing work-related topics with him, other conversations were generally hit-or-miss. Reid accidentally stumbled over one of the small rocks lining the pathway, and he steadied himself by grabbing JJ's arm. He called back so Garcia and Emily could hear him, "No one better have just won a bet off of that!" Laughter was his only answer.

They were a fit bunch, so the group traveled at a quick pace despite walking leisurely. Soon they reached their destination, Bubble Rock. They were surprised to find it had been recently taped off, and there was at least one police officer on the scene that they could see as they approached. "I wonder what happened here," Emily said to no one in particular. They were all curious, and there was no doubt that they all wanted to check it out…


	20. Chapter 20

**We thank you for the reviews/alerts/favs. **

**Auraya-of-the-White:**

"Excuse me," JJ boldly asked the uniformed man standing in front of the yellow crime tape. The entire parking lot had been cordoned off. One couldn't even approach the trailhead. "What happened here?"

"Just a hiking accident ma'am," the park ranger replied, "No need to worry your pretty little self about it." He smirked condescendingly.

The rest of the group stood in hearing distance and at those words Emily's face rapidly changed color. Her inner feminist and protective side was out in full force. She looked like a bull ready to charge. Hotch placed a hand on her shoulder, effectively reminding her to stay still and keep her temper under control.

JJ glanced at him dismissively, turned her back, and walked off calmly, cool as a cucumber. She had long perfectly the art of dealing with jerks.

Emily's hand twitched towards her empty hip as she shook off Hotch, "Scumbag." she muttered under her breath.

"No badge display?" Rossi inquired as JJ rejoined the team, eyebrow raised.

"He wasn't worth it." she shrugged.

At the mention of badges, Emily reached into the outside pocket of her hiking pack, feeling for her badge.

"_Huh, that's weird_," she thought, "_Guess I left mine in the tent._"

"So no Boulder Rock hike today. Anyone up for Beehive? It's back over by Sand Beach." JJ suggested. She was the one who carried the worn visitors' guide.

Everyone nodded and together, armed with hiking packs, trail mix, and water bottles, they caught the next Island Explorer bus.

"Did you know…?" Reid piped up as they were riding the bus.

The team groaned in unison. Not even during vacation could they escape from Reid's statistics.

"Reid, honey," Garcia interrupted, "We'll all promise not to fall off a cliff while hiking, okay?"

Reid ducked his head and blushed while the team tried to suppress their laughter.

* * *

The team took finally reached the highest point of Beehive, standing by the pile of rocks with a wooden post rising from the center. They had just climbed a trail with an amazing bird's eye view of Sand Beach. None of them had fallen off a cliff despite the ladder rungs and narrow metal rod bridges they had to cross. The view was breath taking at the top and all were glad that JJ had forced them into this vacation.

They continued following the trail further picking delicious fresh blueberries until they reached The Bowl. Its clear pond water shimmered in the afternoon sun and after their long hike everyone was eager to dive in. They changed in the bushes, still carrying their swimsuits from earlier in the day.

"Don't forget to watch out for poison ivy," the huntsman inside Rossi warned.

JJ emerged first, clad in her brown and gold bikini, a strange look gracing her face.

Morgan appeared soon after in his swim trunks, laughing at JJ's expression, "I take it you're still scared of the woods?" he teased.

"Shut up," she responded shoving him playfully.

As the rest of the team laid out their towels on the flat granite rock surrounding the water, Morgan ran forward and dived gracefully into the water. He swam out to the center and treaded water, waiting for the others to join him. Emily in her black bikini followed suit with a big cannonball. Hotch swam out slowly letting the cool water wash over his body with Rossi following close behind.

Reid was still busy applying sun screen – he tend to burn easily – when JJ shrieked loudly and pulled her feet out the water. She had been edging her way into the water down the sloping granite ramp.

"What is it JJ?" Garcia ran over to her worriedly in her bright geometric one piece swimsuit. JJ pointed at something in the water when she emitted a shriek herself.

The rest of the team in the pond waited anxiously as Reid went to look at it too.

"Oh, it's just a _Hirudo medicinalis_or otherwise known as a leech. Don't worry leeches only attach if you're moving slowly and in shallow water." Reid commented and then to demonstrate his point leaped into pond and swum out further.

JJ eyed the leech nervously, grabbed a nearby stick and poked it onto land where it writhed in the same spot slowly.

"It moves so fast underwater." Garcia commented at a safe distance.

"Come on chickens!" Emily called, "It won't hurt you!"

JJ and Garcia cast one last glance at it, grabbed each others hands and jumped screaming into the water. They spent another half hour out there splashing and dunking each other before heading back to the campsite.

* * *

Emily threw apart her things searching methodically. She had always been an organized person but for some reason she could not find her badge. The guys had taken the task of making a fire upon themselves and were now gathering wood, when a ranger vehicle pulled up to their campsite.

"Excuse me, is there an Agent Emily Prentiss here?" he called out from inside his jeep.

Garcia and JJ looked up from the picnic table where they were marking down the results of the bets from today.

Emily approached the ranger, and said, "That's me."

"Good," he showed her a black object, her FBI badge. "This was dropped off a ranger station anonymously, you must have dropped it. Can you show me id please?"

"Oh, sure." Emily pulled out her driver's license and the ranger handed her the badge.

"Have a nice stay." he said, tipping his hat and left.

Emily tucked her badge away securely and plopped a squat at the picnic table.

* * *

That afternoon in Acadia Park, further south on the coast of Mount Desert Island, a slight chilly fog had settled in. She stood at the edge of Otter Point, the weather driving off other tourists. She scanned the coastline for signs of movement; she so desperately wanted to see an otter.

A hooded man approached her silently from behind. He reached out with his leather gloved hands and gave her a hard shove. She was too surprised to scream as she fell to her death on the rocks below, the cold ocean waves sweeping over her body.

Carl turned to leave, another kill well done. He had to admit that despite being bossy, Lawrence really knew what he was doing. He hoped the FBI would get involved soon. He would be recognized as a killer and Lawrence would get revenged at that lead FBI guy.


	21. Chapter 21

**Thn0715:**

Prentiss sat down next to JJ, still beside herself at losing her badge. How on earth could she let that happen?

"Let it go, Emily," said JJ. "It could have happened to any of us. Don't worry about it."

"JJ's right," Morgan agreed. "Now would you three come on over here, you're gonna miss out on the marshmallows!"

JJ, Em and Garcia joined the guys around the fire. They spent two hours laughing, joking, telling stories, and watching one of the most breathtaking sunsets any of them had seen in a while. As the fire died down, they decided to call it a night and retreated to their tents.

In the guys' tent, Morgan and Reid fell asleep almost instantly. Hotch and Rossi sat up talking quietly for a few minutes before they, too, were passed out.

In the girls' tent, the fun was just beginning.

"I can't believe you picked Rossi to be the first one to get hurt!" Em teased. "He's a freakin' woodsman for crying out loud! Everyone knew it would be Reid!" He had tripped on a fallen tree branch and scraped his knee, prompting the girls to shout "five bucks" once again, after making sure he was okay, of course.

"I wasn't thinking!" Garcia retaliated. "I had other things on my mind at the time!"

"Like Morgan's pajamas?" JJ snickered.

JJ and Em rolled with laughter and Garcia turned three shades of red before uttering, "Morgan in his jammies is a nice picture, but no, it's not Morgan. It's Kevin."

Suddenly JJ remembered their conversation from two days ago that they never got to finish.

"So, what's the big deal anyway?" JJ asked. "What's going on?"

Garcia looked down and mumbled something inaudibly. The girls leaned in closer.

"What was that?" asked Em.

Garcia sighed. "He wants to get marr… marr… UGH! I can't even say it!"

"Married?" asked JJ.

"Yes. He wants to get," Garcia took a deep breath, "married!"

The girls squealed with delight, them immediately threw their hands over their mouths.

"Shh!" Garcia scolded. "You're gonna wake up the guys!"

They nearly pounced on her with hugs and congratulations, and the demand of every single little detail.

Garcia was halfway through the story of a romantic dinner by candlelight and an evening of online gaming when a noise halted the conversation.

"What is that?" Prentiss whispered.

They listened intently as the panicked moaning from the next tent grew slightly louder. She looked at the other two.

"Is that Hotch?"

In the next tent…

He was 12 years old all over again. He woke up in the hospital, his mother standing over him, his little brother crying in the corner.

"Where am I? What happened?" He looked around the room and noticed someone was missing. "Where's Kayla?"

"Honey, you have a concussion," his mother tried to calm him. "Just relax."

"Where's Kayla?" he asked again, the panic starting to creep into his voice.

She tried to break the news gently, but there's just no easy way to tell your 12 year-old that his best friend in the world is dead. Aaron immediately tried to get up, but the concussion sent the room spinning. His mother pushed him back down, and he gave up fighting as the tears streamed down his face.

"No!" he cried. He hid his face in his hands. "No, no, no!"

"Aaron." This voice wasn't his mother.

"No!"

"Aaron, wake up."

"No!"

"Aaron!" Rossi shook him gently and finally the nightmare ended. Hotch woke up frantic, shaking, sweating, and unable to catch his breath. He looked around and saw, instead of his mother and brother, Morgan and Reid still asleep in their sleeping bags.

"Come on," Rossi guided his friend. "Let's go for a walk."

They got up and walked outside. Rossi glanced back and saw three concerned faces staring out at him from the other tent. He held up a hand, signaling them to stay put, and followed Hotch to the fallen tree log he was using as a bench. Hotch was sitting with his head in his hands trying to pull himself together. Rossi sat next to him, still giving him a little space, and waited for him to calm down.

"I'm sorry," Hotch muttered.

"Don't apologize, Hotch," he said. "Just talk to me. This is the second time in as many days that you've woken up like this."

"I don't know why I can't shake this." He looked out through the trees, like he was searching the past for missing pieces. He shook his head. "I had this same nightmare for weeks after Kayla died, but I thought I'd come to terms with it. I haven't had this nightmare in over 20 years, Dave."

"Maybe seeing her killer's twin on the plane brought it all back? It wouldn't be surprising. Even after all that time."

"I know it did, but it just feels like something else. He didn't kill her. I know that. I just can't shake the feeling that I'm missing something. Like there's more to this than I know."

Rossi put a hand on Hotch's shoulder. "When we get back to Quantico, you and I will look back at this, okay? We'll get Garcia to run some checks, look into every aspect you can think of. If there's anything missing, we'll find it. But there's nothing we can do about it out here. You need to try to get some rest."

"I think I'm gonna sit out here for a while. You should go back to sleep. I'm sorry I woke you."

"Like I said, don't apologize." Rossi got up and went back to the tent. JJ, Prentiss and Garcia were still awake, waiting just inside their tent opening.

"Dave," Prentiss whispered. "Is he okay?"

Rossi thought for a second before answering, "He will be."

In the woods near their campsite, Frederick was on his cell phone with Lawrence.

"I followed the Ranger when he returned Agent Prentiss' badge. I know where they are. You were right. Seeing me on the plane really shook him up. This is going to be more fun than we thought." He gave a sinister laugh and hung up the phone.


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: Sorry it's been such a long time, once again thanks for the reviews/alerts/favs. We have a new writer joining us, Azira aka SignedSealedWritten.**

**WrenWing/ThursdayNext:  
**

Hotch turned his head towards the sound. He peered into the dark woods around their campsite, seeing nothing but shadows. He sat motionless on the fallen log, wondering if he had imagined it. The scent of pine trees filled the air and a light breeze blew. He drew in a deep breath and tried to relax. Then the sound came again, followed by the snap of a branch on the ground. His instincts took over and he slipped down off the log and crouched on the ground. He was barefoot, wearing nothing but his cotton sleep pants. A breeze tickled across the bare skin of his back as he strained to hear where the sound had come from. He could feel a warning creep up the back of his neck and curl inside him. His breathing seemed loud in the quiet of the woods as he remained still, staring into the darkness.

Then he saw it, a large hulking shadow move between two trees only a few meters from where he crouched. It walked upright, quickly dispelling the notion of an animal out for food. Hotch waited only a second longer, then launched himself at the hulking shadow.

He connected with the dark shape and heard a grunt as they rolled to the ground. They landed only slightly apart and the man scrambled to get up and away. Hotch was faster, pinning him down with his weight as the man struggled to get free. Hotch dug his hands into the man's shoulders, but the stranger was panicked and struck out with his fist, connecting with Hotch's jaw.

Lawrence saw the agent's head snap back and he shifted his weight, throwing the other man to the side. He growled low in his throat as he sprang after Hotch, hands clawing at his throat. He could feel Hotch's knees gripping him like a vise, desperate to gain the advantage.

Hotch began to see stars as the hands closed tighter around his throat. He could feel twigs and rocks digging into his bare back, as his sweat slicked chest heaved with effort. He grabbed at the man's clothes, trying to get a tighter grip and pulled the shadowy face close to his own. It was then he saw the eyes, those damn hollow eyes, staring back at him with a frightening intensity. Desperate fury rose up in Hotch. He struck his hand out on the ground until he curled his fingers around a rock. He crashed it against the man's skull, narrowly missing the temple.

The rock scratched across Lawrence's face with a fiery burn, and he lost his grip on the agent's neck, tumbling off him to the ground. He rolled, scrambled to his feet and ran, disappearing into the darkness of the woods. Hotch pushed himself up to his knees, his heart pounding in his chest as he fought to control his breathing. He could feel blood trickling down his side from where the rocky ground had torn at his skin.

The feeling that something was wrong came back in full force; the man on the plane, the nightmare, a stranger stalking them in the woods, he knew there was more to it all than simple coincidence. He stayed on the ground only a minute longer, his adrenalin still pumping through his veins. A soft breeze played across his skin, cooling it, and lifted his dark hair off of his face. As he pushed himself to his feet, the moonlight peeped through the pine branches and glinted off something on the ground. It caught Hotch's eye and he reached for the object, turning it over in his hand. A cold fear settled deep in his core.

He strode back into their camp, the light from their dying fire playing over his body. He saw a shadow moving in his tent and called softly to Rossi, who peered out at him. Rossi took in Hotch's appearance - cheeks flushed with anger, the dirt stuck to his chest, the blood seeping down to his cotton pants, and he darted from the tent and put his hand on the other man's shoulder.

"My God, Aaron, what's going on here?"

Hotch took a deep breath, his smooth chest rising and falling with the force of it. He looked at Rossi, his mouth set in a grim line. When he spoke, Hotch's voice resonated with promise.

"I don't know yet. But I'm going to find out." He held out his hand to Rossi, revealing what the stranger in the woods had dropped. Rossi's breath caught in his throat as he saw what Hotch held so gently in his hand. A small gold pendant necklace with one word engraved across the front in tiny letters: _Kayla. _


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: We have a new writer joining us....Hope you enjoy, please read and review.**

**Azira/SignedSealedWritten:**

Emily Prentiss couldn't fall asleep. It was the day's events that kept her awake- but mainly, the unease she felt about losing her badge. Her team had assured her that it could happen to anyone – but she still couldn't help but feel as if it wouldn't happen to her. To Reid, maybe – but not to her. Prentiss was careful about these things. In the dark of the tent, she pulled out the badge and opened it. JJ and Garcia were still sleeping, and she moved slowly to not wake them up.

Something small and white fluttered out of the folds of the badge.

"_What in the world?" _She whispered, picking up what turned out to be a piece of paper and sitting up. It was folded in half, and she opened it, furrowing her brow.

In small, scribbled hand writing was the word _Death _.

* * *

Carl had forgotten by now about his original plan – before he'd met up with Lawrence. He'd forgotten about the piece of paper that he'd slipped into Emily Prentiss' FBI badge. He'd wanted to use her as bait – and he'd put the small piece of paper in there, planning to find a way to return it to the woman with the haunting threat inside.

And then Lawrence had told him that she wasn't the one to target, and they'd returned the badge.

The note was still there.

* * *

He remembered she'd been wearing it the last time he saw her. Looking over the water, he could see why people saw it as peaceful, but he couldn't feel it right now. The sides of the little pendent bit into the palm of the hand he clenched around it.

He'd given her the pendant for her tenth birthday. It had cost him three months allowance, but he'd bought it and had it engraved. Hotch knew that if his team saw him at that moment, they would try to get him checked out at a hospital – but he wanted nothing of the sort.

"Hotch?"

He'd expected Rossi to follow him and attempt to get him to come back to the tent and attempt to help figure out the mystery – but it wasn't Rossi's voice behind him, it was Prentiss. He turned, hoping that his eyes weren't red and the darkness concealed the blood running down him.

"What happened?"

He shook his head, neglecting to answer - he'd noticed that her fist was clenched around something, too. "What is that?"

He saw her blink and hold out what was in her hand, coming closer so he could see it.

"I found this in my badge …"


	24. Chapter 24

**Redsneakers:**

"What the..." Hotch muttered as he read the small note. He looked back at Emily who was shifting nervously now – and she still looked so guilty about losing her badge. The unit chief looked around before taking Emily by her elbow, leading the way back to their tents. He shoved the golden pendant into his pocket and he felt as if it burned his skin.

Hotch was confused. He had been sure that the man who had attacked her had something to do with Kayla; but now he wasn't that sure anymore. What if Emily was the real target? What if the pendant was a coincidence? He pushed the thoughts away.

"Wake everyone up, Emily. We need to talk about this," he said softly. Emily nodded. He watched as Emily entered the girls' tent. He looked around – making sure there was no one around – before entering his tent to wake the men up.

Reid was the most difficult one to wake up. The young agent was too tired and he didn't want to be woken up in the middle of a cold night. "Can't it wait till tomorrow?" he mumbled sleepily without opening his eyes.

"I think we just got ourselves a new case," Hotch said, not really answering his question.

It took Reid a second to process what Hotch had just said. He sat straight, looking at Hotch bewildered. Before he could say anything, Hotch had walked out of the tent. He followed him and found that everyone had gathered in front of the fire. Just then he saw the bruise on Hotch's face. He frowned but said nothing.

"Emily found this in her badge," Hotch began, showing everyone the piece of paper. "And I saw someone lurking – spying – earlier." The man carefully omitted the part about the necklace. _It was a coincidence_, he ensured himself, silencing the voices in his head.

"Is he targeting Emily?" Garcia asked. She moved closer to her friend as if wanting to protect her.

"We don't know about it yet. But I want everyone to be careful," Hotch replied. He avoided saying that everyone should keep an eye on Emily – he knew Emily wouldn't like being 'protected.' "JJ, I want you to call the police station first thing in the morning, ask them to give us the security camera feed around the time when this _anonymous _person dropped Emily's badge. Garcia, I want you to have a look on it. We're going to find this guy," the unit chief said. _And you'll get your answer, too_, his mind added.

* * *

"Are you nuts?!" Carl bellowed when he saw Lawrence with blood on his face. "What in the hell were you thinking!"

"Shut up, Carl!" The other man shouted back. His head was pounding. "Damn that kid!" He cursed under his breath, pressing his wound with damp towel. It wasn't supposed to be like this. He wasn't supposed to be seen. No one was supposed to be awake when he spied on them. "I'm going to kill that kid!"

Kayla appeared at the door, holding a basin and some disinfectants. Her face had been expressionless since Lawrence came back, but she had let a glimmer of satisfaction flash through her eyes when she saw that the man was wounded. She moved closer to Lawrence and started to clean his wound. "Who did this to you?" she asked innocently. Lawrence growled but he said nothing. For the first time in years, Kayla smiled. "Aaron did it to you, huh?" she continued, somehow feeling braver than she had ever been in her whole life. "That _kid _beat your ass, Lawrence?"

Before Kayla could run away, a slap had landed on her cheek. "Say that again and you're dead!" he yelled.

The redhead blinked; she tried to steady herself. She wasn't sorry she said those things and she wasn't afraid, either. She moved away as she saw Lawrence going to hit her again, but the blow never came. Carl was standing in front of her – shielding her.

"That's enough!" he said. "You were the one who screwed up!" He turned his attention to Kayla. "And you, you say one more word, I'm gonna make you wish you're dead. Get out!" The tall man shoved her out of the room.

Lawrence muttered something and he left the room to change as his shirt was torn and dirty. He got undressed then he stood in front of the mirror naked. His eyes widened as he saw his neck.

_The necklace! _


	25. Chapter 25

**AN: Thanks for the reviews and alerts. Please let us know what you think!**

**Xzonia:  
**

No one got much rest that night. Because there was nothing they could do until morning, Hotch and Rossi insisted everyone go back to bed. Emily protested, saying she couldn't sleep now, knowing whoever was out there might return. Morgan looked at Reid and Garcia, who were awake and prepared to help, but were clearly still groggy. Knowing it was unlikely he'd talk Emily into sleep at this time, Morgan suggested they sleep in shifts.

Hotch, Rossi, and Emily all looked wired, and all three quickly volunteered to take the first shift. Since JJ and Garcia would be headed to the police station first thing in the morning, Morgan offered himself and Reid for the difficult second shift, leaving them to take the last shift in the early morning. Reid frowned at the thought of getting back up in a few hours, but consoled himself quietly that he could at least return to bed now.

To set a good example, JJ and Garcia dutifully marched to their tent without comment. Reid quickly turned and headed for his tent, but hesitated at the entrance. It was empty and dark in there. He cursed himself silently for not grabbing his flashlight before leaving the tent. He looked back at Morgan, who was still exchanging meaningful glances with Hotch, Prentiss, and Rossi. _Why does he always have to do that? _Reid thought in annoyance.

As if he had heard Spence's thoughts, Morgan turned sideways and looked at him. He then straightened back, nodded to the others, turned around, and headed after Reid. Reid exhaled in relief. He held open the tent flap as if he was merely being polite, though he was inwardly glad to not have to enter the tent first. Morgan flashed a knowing smile at Reid and went in first, laughing softly. "What?" Reid asked him quietly, not wanting to be overheard as he followed him in. He wondered what Morgan could find humorous at this moment.

Back at the campfire, the three remaining team members stood awkwardly for a moment while Morgan walked away. Rossi looked at Emily and told her, "We'll get this worked out in the morning." Emily nodded and sat down on the center log closest to the water, wanting to appear less disturbed than she felt by the note left in her badge. Her quick mind looked for some sense in what was happening. The men sat on either log flanking hers, leaving the one farthest from the water unoccupied. This arrangement gave them the best view of their surroundings, and each scanned the area in front of them periodically as they talked in low voices.

Emily confided in them, "When my badge was returned to me, I thought it was strange that I would have lost it. I think whoever left the note took my badge on purpose. But what I can't figure out is why. No one here knows me. No one outside of Garcia and JJ even knew we were coming here to this park. So what made this unsub target me?"

Rossi noted that she was already characterizing the individual as their unsub. "I admit that it's a strong possibility that whoever turned in your badge took it, but we don't know anything for certain yet. Let's try to look at all the possibilities." Emily relaxed a little at his calm tone. He looked at Hotch, wondering if he would volunteer his earlier uneasy feelings to Emily. Aaron's serious demeanor answered for him that he was not in a sharing mood. Rossi realized this was going to be a long shift. To pass the time, he said, "Hey, I think there are still some supplies left. Why don't we make a few more smores tonight while we're up?" Hotch smiled slightly at Dave, and Emily jumped up, relieved to have something to do. "I'll go get the food," she offered quickly. Rossi smiled. He knew he needed to help these two relax because they would need their sleep for tomorrow.

* * *

Bright sunlight greeted Reid with unrelenting cheerfulness when he awoke; as Hotchner had left their tent flap open that morning. He sat up and looked around. He was alone in the tent. He could hear voices outside, so he scrambled up to get dressed and join the others.

Reid and Morgan had decided to wait to wake JJ and Garcia up that morning so they could go get a few more hours sleep. JJ had come out on her own around 6:00, surprised she had slept so late. She admitted she had some difficulty falling to sleep that night. She noticed Reid seemed on edge and Morgan was quieter than normal. She figured the night had been rough on all of them. They sent her back in to wake Garcia up, who awoke abruptly. She hadn't slept well herself that night. They got dressed together in the dark and left the tent together.

Morgan wasn't interested in returning to sleep and chose to stay up and eat breakfast with the ladies, but Reid felt drained. Being up for hours in the pitch-dark forest with only Morgan, the fire, and his trusty flashlight for companionship had been quite the strain on him. Reid had jumped at every noise in the night. About 20 minutes before they were to wake the women, the battery in his flashlight had died, and he realized then and there that his fear of the dark was worse than he'd previously given it credit. Though the sun wasn't going to be up for another hour, Reid could no longer see the stars in the murky morning haze. The fire had burned low. Fog had rolled over the lake, so no light reflected off its surface to them either. The dark had a menacing quality in Reid's agitated imagination.

Morgan had joked with him to keep him from panicking, but the only thing that really helped him relax was his sudden idea to build the fire back up after JJ went back for Penelope. When they emerged from their tent, JJ and Garcia were surprised to be greeted by a large, cheery fire. Morgan had covered for Reid, saying they didn't want their lovely ladies to be cold that morning. He had even started to heat some water for the instant coffee they had brought along. Reid had listened, impressed, to Derek's sudden lively patter with JJ and Garcia as he walked to his tent alone. This time, though, Hotchner and Rossi were already asleep inside, so he didn't hesitate to crawl in and go back to bed.

He thought as he got dressed how the sunlight had never looked as beautiful to him as it did this morning...


	26. Chapter 26

**AN: Thanks for the reviews and alerts. Please let us know what you think!**

**Auraya-of-the-White:**

**AN2: So sorry for the long wait. Been super busy will school, hope you enjoy!  
**

Morgan pulled his black tee over his head and grabbed his toothpaste, toothbrush, and water bottle. Spitting off into some bushes and rinsing out his mouth, he went to join the others by the picnic table, eating granola bars.

"Morning," he said to the group as they nodded in return. Emily and JJ were heading the nearest ranger station this morning to gather as much info as they could on the anonymous person who had dropped off her badge.

The team seemed in a quiet, somber mood. Everyone was shaking off the lingering sleepiness from a bad night's sleep.

As Hotch had gotten dressed that morning, he dropped Kayla's necklace into his pant's pocket. He could feel it laying there heavily against his leg, a constant reminder of his failure as a young boy.

* * *

JJ and Emily pulled up in front of the ranger station in one of the silver sedans they rented. Once inside the log cabin, they asked to speak to someone in charge, flashing their badges.

"I'm Rick, head ranger at this station. How may I help the FBI?" A tall brown haired man clad in the typical olive green uniform of a ranger asked.

He tipped his hat politely as Emily and JJ introduced themselves.

"We were wondering if anyone would be able to provide a description or if perhaps you have security tapes. Someone is threatening me." Prentiss said and produced the typed note.

"No need for video cameras up here ma'am. I'll get the ranger on duty to draw you a sketch and drop it off at your campsite."

"No forensic artists?" JJ frowned.

"No need for them, we're pretty isolated up here and crime is at a minimum, well usually," he muttered.

"What do you mean?" JJ questioned.

"We've had a lot of accidental deaths lately. It's not good for the tourism business. Anyways, that ranger is a wildlife guide, so her artistic abilities are plenty suitable. Anything else I can do you for?" Rick responded.

"Did the man happen to mention where he found Prentiss' badge?" JJ inquired, filing the information about all the deaths away for later.

"Actually, he said it was outside a local restaurant, Jordan Pond House."

"We ate lunch there. Thank you for all your help." Emily shook his hand and left, JJ following.

"Hey, Em?" JJ put a hand on Emily's shoulder once they were outside. Emily turned to face JJ, her shoulders tense.

"It's not your fault, you know," JJ comforted Emily, "This doesn't add up. How could he be targeting you if your badge was dropped on accident?"

"You're right!" Emily exclaimed, "I bumped into a man outside of the restaurant. It was more of a collision. Now that I think about it, he was wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses. I could have easily lost my badge when we ran into each other," she smiled, her guilt alleviated.

"While we wait for the sketch, let's do something fun!" JJ smiled, "It is our vacation after all. You mentioned that you wanted to go rock climbing again. There's a great spot near Otter Point. Acadia offers classes too. What do you think?"

"That does sound fun," Emily grinned in return, "I haven't rock climbed since my teen years when we were in Nepal."

JJ went to unlock the car doors, "I can't wait to see Reid reveal his hidden upper body strength." They both laughed together.

* * *

They arrived back at the camp in time to interrupt Reid, "…There are less than five bear attacks in Maine per century. Being attacked is rare, but it helps to follow these important protocols when camping."

As Reid took a breath, JJ ushered everyone into the cars and told them she had another surprise. On the drive back to the campsite, she had made some calls and arranged a lesson in top-roping. Emily smirked as the others groaned, wondering what JJ had come up with this time.

They found their way to Otter Point without much trouble. Emily shivered and zipped up her wind breaker. Clouds were covering the sun and a fog had crept in. The three girls clustered together quietly enthusing and chatting about Garcia's upcoming engagement. As they followed their instructor through a small wooded trail from one rocky ledge to the next, Rossi dropped back near Hotch to speak with him.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

He had noticed Hotch's aloofness from the rest of the team. Rossi suspected Hotch was bearing a lot of guilt for he had and had not done in the past.

Hotch glanced at Rossi impassively, "I'm dealing. There are just a lot of old memories floating around in here," he admitted softly while tapping lightly against his head.

Rossi nodded and let the matter drop. They emerged onto the ledge, a wide rocky plateau with about twenty feet to the drop off into the water. The seagulls cried harshly as their human presence frightened them away. Emily approached the edge, looking down at the smashing waves. She took a deep breath inhaling the salty scent of the ocean and started to prepare for her descent.

Prentiss was the only one who had done rock climbing before so the instructor was using her as an example. The instructor would be Emily's belayer in case Emily slipped; her weight and attaching ropes would stop Emily's fall.

Emily pulled the black climbing harness over her hips and tightened it. She attached the carbiners, one by one. She slipped on a white helmet and fastened it under her chin. The instructor followed suit and then they double checked each other's gear.

The team approached the edge of cliff and watch intently as Emily prepared to rappel down the side. The rope connecting Emily and the instructor ran through an anchor at the top of the ledge.

"Careful Em!" Garcia called out.

The entire team was rather nervous, after all Emily was about to launch herself off the side of a cliff.

Emily smiled brightly in returned, waved, and yelled, "Cowabunga!" as she leapt off the side.

For a few moments, her heart soared as she free fell, but soon enough her shoes met the rock face and she bounce off, rappelling towards the ocean beneath. As she got close enough to feel the ocean spray on her face she stopped and looked around. To her right, she could see the expansive ocean, the waves cresting white and rolling in to slam against the sharp rocks below her. She shivered. Falling onto those would not be pleasant.

She was about to gesture by pulling on the rope that she was coming back up when she noticed a dark lump to her left. The waves yanked it outwards and smashed it back up against the rocks. Emily thought it was a dead seal at first, but as she walked sideways, she realized that it was a girl, a person. She ascended quickly scaling the cliffs expertly, searching for the best feet and handholds. The team watched, impressed.

Her face flush from exercise, she yelled, "Hotch!" a couple yards from the top.

He peered over the edge at her concernedly, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, but there's a dead woman down there," she informed them pulling herself back onto solid ground, "Somebody should do something about that."


	27. Chapter 27

**Thn0715:**

Hotch rubbed the back of his neck and looked back at his team. "Looks like the vacation is over, gang. Sorry." He turned back to the instructor. "You need to get your head ranger and local PD here. And Prentiss and I need to get down there."

The instructor nodded in agreement and immediately got on the radio to inform the ranger station what had been discovered. In his truck was a spare radio, which he brought back with him and gave to Hotch. He went through all of the protocols and safety procedures again with Hotch and Morgan, who would act as Hotch's belayer. Morgan was plenty strong enough to hold Hotch's weight in case something went wrong. Once everyone was set and all safety gear was in place, Hotch and Prentiss rappelled down the cliff to the rocks below.

Prentiss reached the bottom first and carefully disconnected from the ropes, being mindful of the sharpness and slickness of the rocks. Hotch followed her lead and soon they were kneeling next to the body. Hotch got on the radio and relayed what they were seeing.

"White female, approximately 25-30 years old. No ID on her. From what we can see, her injuries appear to be consistent with a fall from the cliff. No defensive wounds. Looks like the waves haven't been kind. She's been knocked around a good bit."

"We'll relay everything to the rangers and police when they get here," Morgan responded. "You two be careful down there."

Prentiss was looking around, taking in the scene. She got Hotch's attention and pointed to the rocks a few feet away.

"There's dried blood on the rocks over there. That's probably where she landed. Most likely the impact propelled her over here. Or the waves carried her over."

Hotch got up and moved toward the bloodstained rocks. In his haste he stepped on a slippery rock and fell into the water.

"Hotch! Are you alright?"

"Damn! That's cold!" He stood up, soaked and shivering, and shook off the cold water. "I'm okay. Just…"

As he was walking forward something snagged his foot. He reached down to untangle himself and jumped back in surprise. The action didn't go unnoticed.

"What is it?"

He looked at Prentiss. Her stomach fell. She knew that look. She hated that look. Nothing good ever came from that look.

He took a deep breath and submerged himself in the icy water. He untangled the object and pulled it to the surface.

"We have another body."

Prentiss helped him pull it from the water and lay it on the rocks. Then she got on the radio.

"We've got a big problem…"


End file.
